Bi12TiO20 (BTO); Bi12GaxBi1−xO19.5 (BGaO); and Bi12(M1/3P2/3)O20, M = Cd, Zn, and Ni (BMPO) thin films were prepared by pulsed laser deposition using a KrF excimer laser on (100)Y-stabilized zirconia (YSZ), (100)Bi12GeO20 (BGO), and (110)Bi12SiO20 (BSO) crystalline substrates. All these films have a sillenite structure. On (100)YSZ the sillenite is oriented as {310} with the 〈130〉 direction parallel to the 〈021〉YSZ directions (〈130〉{310}BTO〈021〉{100}YSZ). On (100)BGO and (110)BSO the sillenite film reproduces the substrate orientation, and the films formed are able to channel He+ particles. The optimum deposition temperatures for BTO and BGaO are 600 and 550 °C, respectively. Higher temperatures must be avoided to minimize the nucleation of Bi-deficient phases due to the diffusion of Bi into the YSZ substrates. BMPO films are polycrystalline. The lattice parameters of these films were determined. The crystalline films support guided optical modes. The refractive indices obtained for the films are close to those measured in bulk crystals, being slightly larger for films deposited on isomorphous sillenite substrates. The crystalline films deposited on YSZ are photoconductors when excited in the green and blue spectral regions.

Single-phase nanocrystalline Co9S8 was prepared by hydrothermal treatment of Co(Ac)2 and NH2CSNH2 in hydrazine solution at 170 °C. The products were characterized by x-ray powder diffraction (XRD) technique, transmission electron microscope (TEM), and wet chemical analysis. XRD indicated the product was the cubic Co9S8 phase. The relative crystallite size was 6.3 nm as determined by the Scherrer method. TEM images showed the particles were agglomerative. The electron diffraction pattern also revealed their nanocrystalline nature. In this hydrothermal formation process of Co9S8, hydrazine was a critical factor. The formation process is discussed.

In the present paper, the process of phase separation in calcium aluminosilicate glasses (CAS glasses) containing TiO2 as a nucleating agent is studied. A static electric field promotes the process of phase separation even when the time of heat treatment is short. The effect of electric field on phase separation acts through the higher polarizability of Ti ions. Alkali ions, when present, will diffuse toward the cathode, which may generate different micromorphology at the parts of samples near the cathode and the anode. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Raman spectra analysis confirm the conclusion that the electric field has promoted phase separation in CAS glasses.

Crystallization of the Ti45Ni20Cu25Sn5Zr5 alloy has been studied by means of scanning differential calorimetry, x-ray diffraction, and conventional and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The first stage at about 750–800 K is related to the primary crystallization of the Ti8Ni3Cu3SnZr metastable phase having Im3m body-centered-cubic structure with a lattice parameter of a = 0.3069 nm followed by precipitation of the secondary dotlike phase precipitates on its boundaries. The activation energy for the first exothermic reaction determined by Kissinger analysis was found to be 310 kJ/mol. CuTi, Ni2TiZr, and an unknown phase are formed during long-term annealing at high (more than 850 K) temperature.

Ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene, an important biomaterial for orthopedic implants, was irradiated with 2.6- and 3-MeV H+ ions at low doses from 5.7 × 1011 to 2.3 × 1014 ions/cm2. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy showed that irradiation resulted in increased free radicals, carbon double bonds, and increased methyl and vinyl end groups. The free radicals resulted in poor polymer oxidative stability, as measured by increased carbonyl concentration. Hydrogen annealing after ion irradiation reacted with the free radicals generated during proton irradiation resulted in a 40–50% decrease in infrared absorption associated with carbonyl and prevented further oxidation.

Tobermorite was synthesized successfully from waste incineration fly ash by hydrothermal treatment in the presence of sodium hydroxide solution. The tobermorite synthesis was examined as a function of reaction temperature, time, and NaOH concentration. The formation of tobermorite was identified in all of the fly ash treated with NaOH at 180 °C, followed by the minor generations of sodalite and cancrinite phases with increasing NaOH concentration and extending reaction time. The NaOH-treated fly ash revealed the uptake behaviors for Cs+ and NH4+, whereas the fly ash untreated with NaOH solution did not show that. The uptake amounts of resulting products were also determined: 0.40 mmol/g for Cs+ and 0.35 mmol/g for NH4+ in the fly ash treated with 2.0 M NaOH at 180 °C for 20 h.